Basically, Raging Justice is a classic beat ‘em up in every sense of the word. Players assume the role of one of three characters—Rick, Ashley or Nikki—and let their fists fly as they beat down punk after punk in classic gameplay fashion. This is where Raging Justice shines brightest. The beat ‘em up style that reminds us of classic games like Final Fight or Streets of Rage is where Raging Justice seems to work perfectly. Each of the three characters uses a different style—Rick hits hard while Ashley is quick for example—and you can even use super moves at the risk of depleting some of your health. You’ll be fighting through several stages picking up guns, weapons and random objects as well as kicking and punching enemies till you reach the end of the stage where a boss usually is waiting. Unfortunately, for every good thing Raging Justice does well, it also makes a lot of mistakes that hinder the experience you’ll be having if you play it.

Let’s look at the pros first. As we mentioned numerous times already, Raging Justice harkens back to the classics and it works well doing so. Equally, having a buddy—who needs to be in the same room as you since there is no online co-op here—makes Raging Justice feel like the arcade beat ‘em up it’s trying to be. With some excellent music and the ability to even arrest enemies rather than just beat them till they fade away, Raging Justice seems to be the perfect trip for us gamers who love the classics. Though the longer you play Raging Justice the more you begin to see the bigger problems it has.

Raging Justice has some very ambitious ideals that might be trying to adhere to the way old school beat ‘em ups felt, but it doesn’t work in the current gaming landscape. Often, Raging Justice just reminds us of the classic beat ‘em ups that did it better and it makes us want to play those instead of this. Add to that the visuals which are downright poor and you’re just left sighing as you go through the same seven enemy variants over and over hoping the next boss will at least ease the repetition. Though even the bosses for Raging Justice—which some are literally anger inducing—don’t help with their very cliché designs and downright annoying fighting styles. Needless to say, Raging Justice feels old, looks old and gets old fast.

Though here at Honey’s Anime, we don’t like to end a review on a sour note so let us mention one other element we liked about Raging Justice. Aside from story mode, there is a Brawl Mode which is pretty entertaining. Players will fight wave after wave of enemies all with only one life. This mode might be simple but it’s a nice incentive to see added in to Raging Justice as it gives the game some longevity. Raging Justice also has an online leaderboard for everything too which means competitive players will always want to see how far they can go in Brawl Mode or how fast they can beat one of the story mode levels all while racking up points. It’s not a lot, but it’s enough to entice some gamers in the right direction.

Old school beat ‘em ups don’t release often anymore in the current gaming era, but it’s understandable seeing as how they are kind of a dying genre of games. The classics like Streets of Rage, Altered Beast or even Double Dragon will always hold a fond place in our hearts here at Honey’s Anime even now in 2018. However, Raging Justice will be a game that probably won’t ever have the same reaction as it’s a game with classic inspirations but done in a rather ho hum manner. We didn’t hate our experience with Raging Justice, but we equally can’t say it’s worth the asking price of $14.99 unless you love all things beat ‘em up. Are you thinking of buying Raging Justice or have you already? Let us know in the comments below as we always love hearing from our readers and what opinions they wish to share with us. Remember to keep stuck to our hive for even more game reviews and articles from us here at Honey’s Anime!